The Alpha King’s Human Mate

“By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail.”@

Benjamin Franklin

Alessia and I sat on the balcony for more than an hour fine-tuning the plan. I

learned very quickly that Alessia was a natural strategist. Maybe it came from her Alpha heritage, but either way, I was glad to have her in my corner.

“I’ll meet you by your rooms at 11:30,” Alessia told me, “I’m supposed to meet my

driver by the south entrance at noon, so that should give us enough time to get

there. You’re sure that the King won’t be in the room with you?”

“Pretty sure,” I said, “He’s dealing with some crisis regarding the incident with the Alpha King. He explicitly told me that he’d see me tomorrow. It would surprise me

if he was back in time.”

“Okay, good,” Alessia said, “There’s no way I’m going through with this if the King

is with you. If I run into him, you’re on your own.”

Even I could realize that our plan was dead in the water if Griffin showed up early. I couldn’t say for sure that he wouldn’t be back before Alessia was set to leave, but it was a risk worth taking. This was my one shot out of here and I wasn’t going to

waste it.

“We should exchange numbers too,” Alessia said, “It’ll be easier for you to just

–

text me if something’s wrong that way I don’t have to explain why I ended up at your bedroom door.”

“Deal.”

We did just that and then Alessia and I parted ways.

Fortunately, Griffin’s bedroom was too close for me to get lost and the room was empty when I entered. Alone in the dark with only the moonlight illuminating the room, it felt lonely.

It’s definitely not because Griffin isn’t here.

I approached the b*d and almost did a double-take there was a white sl*p of

–

paper lying on one of the pillows. Upon further inspection, I could see it was a note

written in someone’s eiegant handwriting.

I wish I didn’t have to be away for our first night together, little fox. But once I’ve dealt

with this minor inconvenience, you’ll spend every night in my arms.

Yours, Griffin Bardot

–

There was something sweet about the note that he hadn’t forgotten about me. Although I’m not sure I’d call soothing the entire werewolf world after beheading my father a “minor inconvenience.” (2

As sweet as the note was, it left me with guilt as heavy as lead weight in my

stomach. I had told Alessia that nob*dy would get hurt if we enacted our plan, but

that wasn’t completely true. Griffin would get hurt. He was definitely expecting me to be here when he returned and he’d definitely be upset that I was gone.

3

Suddenly, I recalled our conversation that we’d had earlier in the day when I

had first tried to convince Griffin he’d be better off without me. Griffin had said

that he wouldn’t let anything keep us apart, not even me.

But if I ran, would he really chase me? (22)

Maybe he’d be upset initially, but he had a kingdom to time to hunt down a human girl. O

– he wouldn’t have

And, after a little bit of time, he’d probably just move on to

Omeone else. Someone more suitable for him. A strong female wolf capable of running the kingdom by his side. Someone who would love to be the Queen and Griffin’s mate.

Even as I thought it, the thought of Griffin looking at someone the same way he looked at me left a hollow feeling in my stomach.

That’s just the mate bond talking, Clark.

You need to get out of here, don’t let a little jealousy stop you now.

Leaving is what’s best for you and what’s best for Griffin. He may not realize it yet but he will once I’m gone.

The argument felt empty, but it’s what I continued to tell myself as I changed into some PJs I’d brought and snuggled into b*d. I tried not to think about how much the b*d smelled like Griffin

–

or how this would probably be the last time I smelled

his scent.

平平平

I got up early the next morning and breathed a sigh of relief when I saw the room

Griffin hadn’t returned.

was still empty

I packed my sparse belongings back into my backpack and changed into something comfortable and low-key. I didn’t want to draw attention to my appearance in case some of the guards recognized me or had been told what I look like. Given my natural red hair, it was a little harder said than done hoodie, a pair of jeans, and a tight bun certainly helped. O

My phone dinged.

All clear? A text from Alessia read.

Still good to go, I texted back.

but a comfy

I still had twenty or thirty minutes until Alessia was supposed to arrive, and I watched the door with bated breath. I was in the home stretch now. the last thing I needed was Griffin to return just a few minutes before I managed to leave.

Every pair of footsteps outside the door left my heart drumming, but fortunately, none of them were Griffin.

I stared at the note he’d left on the b*d last night.

For some reason, I had the urge to leave him a note too to let him know that I wasn’t trying to hurt him by leaving. It wasn’t his fault, not really. Maybe things. would be different if he wasn’t a King or a possessive Alpha or even just a werewolf. If Griffin were human, I had no doubt that I’d give him a chance. (5

It was all the baggage that came from being mated to a wolf that held me back.

I sighed and grabbed a black pen from one of his nightstands. I fl*pped the note over to the blank side and didn’t hesitate to start writing.

I’m sorry, it’s not your fault. You deserve someone capable of being your Queen and I need my freedom.Property of Nô)(velDr(a)ma.Org.

As I heard Alessia’s knock on the bedroom door, I placed the note in the same spot where it had been. Q

And then I left. 2